Kristy Abreu / The (Westchester County, N.Y.) Journal News

by Hoa Nguyen, The (Westchester County, N.Y.) Journal New

by Hoa Nguyen, The (Westchester County, N.Y.) Journal New

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- Reigning Miss Westchester Kristy Abreu is accusing New York City police officers of stripping her of her pageant crown and sash, subjecting her to an "extremely invasive frisk and search" and mistreating her and her mother during a traffic stop in May.

The Yonkers native and her parents, who now live in the Bronx, told the city this week that they intend to sue and seek $210 million in damages, saying officers falsely imprisoned Abreu and her mother, Kendy Paredes; deprived them of their constitutional rights; and physically and psychologically assaulted them.

Police stopped the two on a traffic violation, and subsequently accused them of riding in a stolen vehicle despite records showing otherwise, their lawyer alleged in a notice of claim he said was filed with New York City.

City comptroller officials said they have not received the notice while the New York Police Department did not respond to requests for information on the incident.

Abreu said she and her mother were going to the Fashion Fighting AIDS benefit show in Manhattan when they were stopped by two police officers at Broadway and 145th Street at 9 p.m. May 5. After being presented with the vehicle's documentation, police threw Paredes against the car and accused her of driving a stolen vehicle, the claim alleges.

The officers ignored her when she told them there was an error in their computer files that was triggering a "stolen vehicle false alarm," Abreu said, recounting a traffic stop months earlier when another set of officers told her of the problem and then advised her that it had been corrected, according to the claim.

Officers subsequently frisked Abreu, handcuffed her and placed her in the back of a patrol car while "laughing at and mocking" her and her mother, the claim said.

At the police station, Abreu had her sash and crown taken from her and underwent a pat down, the claim said. She and her mother also were placed in a cell with another prisoner who yelled, cursed, taunted and spit on the pair, according to the claim. They said they were denied access to a phone, bathroom and lawyer.

After two hours, another police officer acquainted with Abreu arranged for her to be released so she could track down the car dealer with her father and obtain title documents before returning to the station to free her mother, the claim said.

Since going public with the allegations, Abreu, whose reign ends next month when the next Miss Westchester will be crowned, said she has received much support.

"Thank you all for all of your nice comments and support," she Tweeted Tuesday. "I've kept this in for (a while) and finally I am able to vent and fight for what I believe in."